The Lost Prince
by Shadowblade217
Summary: In an alternate timeline in which King Vegeta heeds Bardock's warning about Frieza, a five-year-old Vegeta is sent to Planet Earth along with the infant Saiyan Kakarot, in order to keep Vegeta safe from Frieza. Growing up on Earth with Goku and his friends, Vegeta is changed in ways he never could have imagined, and must ultimately choose his own destiny.
1. Refugees

**Disclaimer: Dragon Ball, Dragon Ball Z, Dragon Ball GT and their respective franchises are the property of Funimation, Toei Animation, Fuji TV and Akira Toriyama.**

_**The Lost Prince**_

**Dragon Ball Saga, Part 1: Refugees**

_Planet Vegeta_

_Age 737_

King Vegeta, ruler of the Saiyan race, sat upon his throne, glaring at the elite warrior who had just burst into the throne room.

"What is the meaning of this intrusion?" he demanded.

The soldier, a man he recognized, dropped to one knee and saluted his king. "Bardock has gone absolutely mad, sire! He claims that Frieza is coming to destroy the planet!"

King Vegeta's eyes widened in shock. "What? That's ridiculous. We're among Frieza's strongest fighting forces; there's no way he would try to destroy us!"

"That's what I said, sir, but Bardock wouldn't listen! He kept ranting about how his entire team was slaughtered; supposedly, Dodoria killed them on Frieza's orders! It's absurd!"

For the first time, King Vegeta actually focused on the soldier's words. "His team _is_ dead, though?"

The lower-class warrior looked up at him. "I don't know, sir. But he did return alone; that much is true."

King Vegeta contemplated what he'd heard. Ordinarily, he would have dismissed the soldier's report immediately… but something stopped him from doing so. There was no denying that Frieza could easily wipe out the Saiyans if he wanted to, but Vegeta had never suspected that the Arcosian would actually attack them.

But if he _was_ coming… it would be foolish to take chances.

"Clear the room!" the king called. "Everyone except my guards, out!"

Grumbling, the Saiyan politicians and members of Vegeta's retinue exited the room.

King Vegeta turned, his mind made up, to face the soldier. "Find Bardock, and bring him here. If he's telling the truth, I intend to find out."

.

After a few minutes, the same warrior returned, escorting a tall Saiyan in green armor, with red wristbands and a red bandanna around his forehead. His spiky hair stood up around his head, defying gravity, and a large scar was visible on his left cheek. His armor was torn and bloodstained in several places, but he remained strong and on his feet.

"Bardock," King Vegeta greeted the younger Saiyan. "What is this I've been told about you claiming that Frieza intends to attack us?"

Bardock bowed briefly before Vegeta, but it was immediately apparent that he had no time for pleasantries. "Sir, we have to hurry. Frieza can't have been very far behind me, and when he gets here, he intends to destroy us all. He sent Dodoria to attack my team while they were out on a mission, and they were all wiped out! I managed to survive, but Dodoria nearly killed me too."

The Saiyan king raised a hand, halting Bardock. "I've always known you to be a proud and brave warrior, Bardock. But you must admit, this theory of yours sounds ridiculous. Why would Frieza destroy the Saiyans? We're among his most powerful soldiers!"

"Exactly," Bardock snapped emphatically, "and as a result of that, he's afraid of us! He's worried that we'll rebel against him, and his solution is to eliminate our race as a threat, permanently!" He took a step closer to Vegeta, causing the guards to glare at him, and held his hands out, arguing his case. "You have to see that! We have to raise an army, before it's too…"

"King Vegeta!" a voice shouted, as another Saiyan soldier entered the room. "We've detected Lord Frieza's ship on our sensors, rapidly approaching the planet!"

Bardock, who had whirled to face the soldier, froze in horror. _Damn it… I'm too late!_

Rising to his feet, King Vegeta glared at the soldier. "Gather as many soldiers as you can find, and get them ready!" As the soldier ran from the room, he turned to Bardock. "Seems you were right after all, Bardock. Come with me."

As the Saiyan king strode out of the room, his red cape swirling behind him, Bardock quickly followed. "Where are we going?" he asked.

King Vegeta turned back to face Bardock. "My son is somewhere in Frieza's empire. I need you to help me get him to safety."

.

As alarms began to blare throughout the capital city of Planet Vegeta, the two Saiyan warriors made their way to the spaceport.

"His ship's getting closer," Bardock warned.

King Vegeta nodded. "Indeed. All right, here's the plan; I'll signal my son from down here, and then we'll go after Frieza."

"But where can he go?" Bardock asked in surprise. "If we can't stop Frieza, this entire planet will be a cloud of rubble floating in space within an hour! Nowhere on this entire world is safe! He can't come back here!"

"That's why I'm not planning on sending him down to the planet," Vegeta replied calmly. "There are plenty of Attack Pods on the military base where he's stationed, all of them programmed by Saiyans. All my son needs to do is get into one and get the hell out of there."

"Again… to _where?_ Nowhere in Frieza's entire empire will be safe for him! He looks just like you!"

King Vegeta paused, thinking that over. _He's right… there's no way my son could pass inconspicuously on a planet within the Planet Trade Organization. But where else could I send him?_

As a matter of fact, it was Bardock who came up with the perfect solution. "I've got it!" He snapped his fingers in realization. "My son, Kakarot; they shipped him out today, to a Class Five world outside the empire. What if we sent your son with him? He'd probably be better off with another Saiyan around to help him, anyway."

At first, Vegeta was irritated by the suggestion. _My son, needing another Saiyan to _help_ him?! The notion itself is completely laughable!_ He paused for a long moment, mulling it over in his mind. _Still… he has a point. At least this way my son wouldn't be left completely alone and cut off from contact with the empire for heaven knows how long._

"Very well," he answered. "I'll make the preparations. Find the coordinates of the planet your son was sent to, so we can relay them to my son's scouter."

Bardock nodded. "Yes, sir!"

.

_Thirty minutes later…_

By the time Bardock had identified the coordinates of Kakarot's destination, Frieza's ship had entered the upper atmosphere of Planet Vegeta, where it had come to a halt. The two Saiyans met up at the spaceport, where alarms continued to blare. At least a hundred elite Saiyan warriors, who had hastily been gathered to Vegeta's summons, lined up before them. Bardock, his injuries bandaged and treated as thoroughly as possible, stood beside King Vegeta.

"All right, men," Vegeta called out. "As some of you may know, Frieza is currently in orbit around our planet! What you most likely don't know is that he intends to destroy us all, and burn our world! But I have no intention of letting him do so!"

The soldiers roared in affirmation.

"Our time has come!" King Vegeta continued. "Today is the day when we will rise up and take back everything Frieza has stolen from us! Today, we strike down the tyrant and recover our planet, our land, and our pride!"

As deafening cheers rang out around him, the Saiyan king smiled. _Good, they're behind us now. Now we just have to win this battle._

He exchanged a glance with Bardock, feeling a tinge of foreboding. _If we can, that is._

"Now!" Vegeta ordered. "To arms!"

The Saiyans roared in response, their auras flaring up around them, burning the air with their potency. A hundred of his race's finest warriors, ready for battle.

Privately, King Vegeta hoped it would be enough.

.

_Frieza Planet 247_

A young Saiyan, five years old, gazed out through the viewports of his room, to the bustling activity outside.

Vegeta, prince of the Saiyan race, turned, sat down on his bed and let out a sigh. He hadn't seen his homeworld in quite some time, and he longed to see his father again.

Abruptly, his scouter beeped, indicating an incoming transmission. Picking it up and latching it into place on his, head, Vegeta tapped a button, answering the signal.

"Who is this?" he demanded.

"_Vegeta? My son?"_ a familiar voice called. _"Is that you?"_

Vegeta's eyes widened. "Father? What is this? Why are you contacting me?"

"_Vegeta, listen to me very carefully. You need to get off of that planet immediately. Do you understand?"_

Utterly confused, Vegeta frowned, listening more closely. "What are you talking about?" he asked. "What is this?"

King Vegeta sighed. _"My son… Frieza has come to Planet Vegeta. I fear that he intends to destroy it, and the Saiyan race as well. And none of us have the power to stop him."_

Vegeta's face twisted in horror. "W…What?! Destroy… the planet?! The entire Saiyan race?!"

"_Yes._" King Vegeta paused. _"But hope is not lost, my son. We have developed a strategy that will ensure our race's survival, and it depends on you."_

Vegeta was puzzled for a moment. "On me?"

"_Indeed. I'm sending you a series of coordinates to a Class Five planet, outside the empire. A Saiyan child named Kakarot, the son of a warrior named Bardock, was sent there today. I want you to take an Attack Pod and go to those coordinates. You'll be safe there."_

Vegeta glared incredulously at the scouter lens. "You want me to _run and hide?!_"

"_Listen to me!"_ King Vegeta snapped, silencing his son. He continued, his tone much more somber. _"If we cannot defeat Frieza, the Saiyan race will be all but wiped from existence today. You will be one of our race's last survivors, and, if I am gone, you must be the new leader of our race. You are the prince of the Saiyan race, Vegeta, and to uphold that, you must live. Now, get off of that planet and set a course for those coordinates _immediately!_ GO!"_

Vegeta considered his options, but it didn't take him long to reach his decision. He'd never liked working for Frieza anyway. "Very well, Father. Send me the coordinates."

"_I'm sending them now. Good luck to you."_ King Vegeta paused briefly, then continued,_ "If we never meet again, remember me… my son."_

Vegeta nodded. "I will, Father."

There was a beep, and the connection went dead. A moment later, Vegeta's scouter beeped again as it received the data transmission; the coordinates for this planet that his father had mentioned. The young prince couldn't make heads or tails of the information, but he knew that he could easily upload it into the computer of an Attack Pod.

His mind made up, Vegeta nodded to himself and began pulling his clothes out of the drawers in his closet. _I don't like it… but if Father's right, I have very little choice. Besides, if Frieza wins and kills my entire race, it's only a matter of time until he decides to kill me too. Like I said; no choice._

Donning his armor and packing his meager possessions into a large backpack, Vegeta took one last look back at his empty room, and then exited, closing the door quietly behind him.

As he'd expected, there were two guards outside his quarters, ostensibly there to protect him, but actually there on Frieza's orders to keep tabs on his location.

Fortunately, neither of them were nearly as powerful as he was.

A swift jump-kick knocked one of the guards unconscious, and Vegeta fired a thin but powerful energy beam from two fingers, burning a hole through the chest of the other guard as he whirled in shock.

Hopping over the bodies, the prince darted off down the corridor, moving at super-speed to conceal his movement from the base's security cameras.

.

_Planet Vegeta_

With a flare of blue light, Bardock, King Vegeta, and the rest of the Saiyan warriors blasted off, heading straight for Frieza's ship.

"Did you get the message to your son?" Bardock called over the rushing winds around them.

"Yes," King Vegeta replied, his eyes narrowing. "He'll follow the instructions, and he should be safe with your son. Frieza would never find them on that planet."

"That's the whole point, isn't it?"

"Obviously."

Bardock's eyes narrowed as waves of Frieza's soldiers began to emerge from the ship, flying straight towards the Saiyans. "Here they come!" he yelled.

"Fire!" Vegeta roared.

The Saiyans howled in bloodlust and opened fire, sending a massive barrage of ki blasts upwards, carving into the mass of alien soldiers.

Vegeta laughed, as his forces charged headlong into the swarm of Frieza's men. "Show them no mercy!" he snarled. "Crush them like the insects they are!"

Most of the Saiyans were considerably stronger than Frieza's soldiers, which gave them an initial advantage, but more of Frieza's fighters were still rushing to join the battle. They were met, however, by King Vegeta and Bardock.

Firing a furious, machine-gun-like volley of energy beams from both hands, the two Saiyan warriors blasted straight through the group of enemies, sending them tumbling helplessly away.

Finally, they came to a halt, facing Frieza's ship.

"FRIEZA!" Bardock roared, his voice echoing across the battlefield. "COME OUT AND FACE US YOURSELF, YOU COWARD!"

After a long moment of silence, the scarred Saiyan's request was granted. Frieza himself rose slowly out of the ship's open upper hatch, seated within his personal hovercar. His two henchmen, Dodoria and Zarbon, flanked him.

"Well, well, well," Frieza called mockingly. "This is certainly a surprise. The king of all Saiyans, leading a rebellion against me? How unusually… _stupid_ of you."

"Nice try, Frieza," King Vegeta replied coolly. "But I know what you were planning to do here. Destroy my planet, would you?" He laughed. "I don't think so!"

Frieza smirked. "Really. And do you two intend to stop me?"

Bardock grinned predatorily. "Actually… yeah. We do." His right hand lit up, glowing bright blue as he poured all of his energy into the growing attack.

As Bardock's attack continued to charge, he looked over to King Vegeta. "Vegeta… help me! Let's end this, once and for all!"

Vegeta smirked. "Why not?" His own left hand also ignited with blue energy, swirling in his palm as he raised his arm. Bardock did the same with his right arm, the two Saiyans holding their arms parallel to each other so that the energy blasts building in their hands almost touched.

"This is for all of the people we killed in your name, Frieza!" Bardock yelled.

"And for everything you've taken from our race!" King Vegeta added.

"_Here! HAVE IT!_" With this joint yell, they drew back their hands – Bardock's right, Vegeta's left – and shoved them forward, launching the combined attack as an intense blue beam of ki, twice as large as it would have been from either one of them.

Frieza's reaction was not what they had expected. Instead of showing fear, he began cackling maniacally.

As he laughed, the tyrant lifted his right hand, curling his fingers into a fist and holding up his right index finger. A tiny orange energy sphere formed at the tip of his finger, and began to increase in size at a shocking speed as he held it up above his head. Within a matter of seconds, it was massive, at least a hundred meters across.

Frieza smirked, and flicked his index finger forward, launching the Death Ball directly towards the two Saiyans, the battling armies, and the planet itself.

Bardock's eyes widened in horror, as did King Vegeta's. When their combined blast collided with the Death Ball, rather than overpowering it or even slowing it down, their attack was simply absorbed into the much larger energy sphere.

"No!" King Vegeta roared, glaring wildly at Frieza in disbelief, but there was nothing anyone could do about it.

As Frieza laughed in triumph, the Death Ball engulfed Bardock and King Vegeta, before crashing into the mass of soldiers below. Hundreds were incinerated instantly, Saiyans and Frieza's soldiers alike.

As Bardock's armor shattered, an image suddenly appeared in his mind's eye; another of the psychic visions that had prompted him to incite this short-lived rebellion against Frieza.

_A young man… no, two of them… stood side by side, facing Frieza on an unknown, alien world. One was taller, with spiky, tousled hair; the spitting image of Bardock, minus the scar on his face._

_The other was shorter, with spiky black hair that stood up from his head in an almost flame-like pattern; except for his lack of facial hair, he was very similar in appearance to King Vegeta._

_Both Saiyans were in fighting stances, and their dark eyes were firm with resolve. Despite Frieza's power, they seemed totally unafraid of their monstrous opponent._

"Kakarot?"_ Bardock murmured. _"And… is that Prince Vegeta?"_ Yes, it must be! These two will succeed where their fathers failed. They'll finish what we started here._

Even through the pain, he smiled. _They will face Frieza. And they will defeat him._

Simultaneously, the same thought flashed through the minds of both Bardock and King Vegeta. For Bardock, the words were filled with pride; for Vegeta, they were laden with regret at his failure.

_Farewell… my son._

And, with a blinding flash of light, the intense heat and pressure of the Death Ball obliterated both proud Saiyan warriors, leaving nothing but dust, a moment before the energy sphere crashed into the surface of Planet Vegeta.

.

_Frieza Planet 247_

As Vegeta sprinted down the hallway, alarms began to blare over the loudspeakers of the base.

The young prince cursed under his breath, knowing that the bodies of his guards had been found. Putting on an additional burst of speed, he ducked around a corner and ran flat-out for the launch pad, where the Attack Pods were located.

.

There were half a dozen soldiers gathered at the launch pad when the alarms went off. All of them immediately went on alert, preparing for whatever might come next.

They were not there for long.

A blue-and-white blur shot out of the base and collided with the group, moving incredibly fast. In the first five seconds, two of the soldiers crumpled to the ground, unconscious or dead.

An energy blast took another man off his feet, and Vegeta slammed into a fourth, a double-footed kick sending his opponent flying. Two quick energy beams, one from each hand, struck the fifth soldier simultaneously, blasting him backwards over the edge of the platform.

The final soldier lunged, hissing, but Vegeta caught his punch and spun, slamming him face-first into the deck and finishing the job with a solid kick to his head.

The young Saiyan nodded in satisfaction, observing the fallen bodies of the soldiers, and hurried over to his Attack Pod. More soldiers would be coming soon, and while he was fairly sure he could beat another group like this one, he couldn't take on the base's entire security force. He needed to get off this planet immediately.

.

As Vegeta opened the hatch of his Attack Pod, he felt a chill run up his spine. Lifting his head, the young Saiyan glanced around, trying to determine the source, but nothing presented itself.

Shaking his head, the five-year-old climbed into the Attack Pod and sealed the door behind him. Entering the coordinates from his scouter into the pod's computer, he strapped himself in and pressed the button to activate the engines.

_All right, Kakarot, or whatever your name is,_ Vegeta thought. _I'm on my way._

With a roar, the Attack Pod blasted off from the launch pad and vanished into the sky, breaking through the atmosphere into space.

.

_On the same day, in Age 737, on a nondescript planet known as Earth, two important events came to pass. A pair of small vessels entered the atmosphere, each carrying a young child._

_The first child, just a baby, who had been named Kakarot by his parents, landed in a forest, on the slopes of Mount Paozu. He was taken in by Son Gohan, an elderly martial artist who raised the boy as his own son, and renamed him Son Goku._

_The second child – Vegeta, the five-year-old prince of the Saiyans – was not on the same approach vector, and so landed in a very different part of the world, hundreds of miles to the south._

_Fate seems to have an interesting way of working itself out, though, because this particular landing site would eventually turn out to be highly advantageous for both boys… even if it didn't have the most auspicious of beginnings._

.

_Kame House_

_Planet Earth_

Master Muten Roshi, the Turtle Hermit, sat on the porch of Kame House, napping in the warm sun. Wearing his ubiquitous red-and-yellow Hawaiian shirt, white baggy pants, and red-rimmed sunglasses, the old martial artist sighed deeply as he inhaled the salty sea air, enjoying the warmth of the sunlight, the cool breeze, and the gentle sound of the ocean.

A sound which was suddenly interrupted by a deafening roar and a shockwave that shook the entire house.

Roshi shot bolt upright, just in time to see a large object skip repeatedly off of the ocean's surface and slam into the beach in a cloud of sand, dust, smoke, and steam.

Jumping to his feet, Roshi hurried down off of the porch and across the beach to where the object had come to rest. As he drew closer, he could tell that a large crater, about ten meters across and two meters deep, had been blasted into the beach. And resting at the bottom of the crater was a large object.

Roshi's eyes widened when he got a better look at it. The "object" was obviously artificial; it was spherical and made from some kind of metal. An odd triangular insignia was emblazoned on one side, and the metal surface was clearly still red-hot.

_Some kind of plane, maybe?_ Roshi mused, tapping his chin. _Or maybe–_ His train of thought was cut off abruptly as, with a click and a hiss of compressed air, the sphere opened, a large section lifting up to expose its interior.

Slowly, a small figure, no more than three or four feet tall, emerged from the sphere, staggering and falling to its hands and knees in the sand. As it crawled up out of the crater, Roshi could see that it was actually a child; a young boy, no more than five or six years old, by the look of him. His hair was jet-black and was spiked up in a pattern similar to a flame. He was wearing unusual clothing: a blue bodysuit, which covered everything except his hands, feet, and head; white gloves on his hands, and white boots on his feet; and, to top it off, what appeared to be white body armor covering his torso, complete with light brown shoulder pads and leg guards. To complete the look, he was wearing some kind of odd, mechanical device on the left side of his head, with a blue glass lens over his left eye like a screen.

Feeling like he should offer to help, Roshi took a tentative step forward. The boy lifted his head in surprise, apparently not having known that the old martial artist was standing in front of him.

"Who the hell are you?" he asked, his voice high-pitched and grating, as he rose to his feet and brushed the sand off of his hands and legs. "And while we're at it, where the hell am I?"

Taken aback by the harsh response, Roshi took a second to respond. "Um… my name is Master Muten Roshi. And as to where you are, well…" He gestured around. "Basically, you're on my island."

The boy sighed. "Great." He looked around, taking in his surroundings. "Have you, by any chance, seen another of these pods land recently?"

Roshi shook his head slowly. "Uh… no. I'm pretty sure I'd remember another one of these crashing in front of my house."

"Damn it!" the boy cursed. "How the hell am I supposed to find him now?" he muttered to himself.

Roshi was very confused by the situation, but he could sympathize with the kid, at least. "Hey… if you need a place to stay for a while, until you can find whoever it is you're looking for, you're welcome to stay in Kame House." He pointed to the large pink house standing nearby. "I've got plenty of guest rooms."

The boy considered, then shrugged. "Fine. As long as I'm adjusting to this planet, I might as well make use of whatever residence I can find." He turned and started off towards the house.

"Wait!" Roshi called, causing the boy to stop. "Since you're going to be staying here for a while, I should probably know your name. I mean, I told you mine, it's only fair." He chuckled slightly at his own joke, but the boy didn't seem amused.

"All right, then." The boy turned, looking back at Roshi with black eyes that seemed to carry a level of intelligence that belied his young age. "You may call me Vegeta." He smirked. "Prince of all Saiyans."

.

_AN: Hello, everyone, and welcome to my newest story, _The Lost Prince_! I came up with the idea for this story fairly recently, and I ultimately got so excited about it that I decided to write it down. In case anyone didn't get it, the overall plot of this story is that, due to a change in the timeline where King Vegeta decides to listen to Bardock's warning about Frieza instead of just ignoring him, the Vegeta we know and love – who's only five years old at this point – was sent to Earth along with the newborn Saiyan baby Kakarot. The only problem is, while Kakarot landed in the same place he did in canon, Vegeta lands on Master Roshi's island. How is this going to change the course of the series? Just you wait!_

_I haven't read or seen the entire story of _Dragon Ball_, so I'll be skipping over the minor stuff in this first series and only covering the major plot points – Grandpa Gohan's death, the start of the first quest for the Dragon Balls, the World Martial Arts Tournaments, etc. I fully intend to explain what happened between each chapter, as there will likely be a time skip between each of the first few chapters, so that the readers can follow where the story's going: I just don't want to have to write filler for this story, so that I can get right to the exciting parts._

_Also, if you guys like this story so far, make sure to check out my other DBZ story, _Dark Heritage_! It has a very different setting than this story – the basic premise for that one is that Cooler decides to intercept Kakarot's Attack Pod after Planet Vegeta's destruction instead of letting the ship go, and Kakarot is then raised as one of Cooler's elite soldiers. It should also be a really good story once I get into it; I've only published one chapter so far, but feel free to read it and let me know what you think!_

_I tremendously appreciate comments and feedback on my work, so if anyone has a comment or question regarding this chapter or the story as a whole, please review! (No hate, please)._

_See you all next time!_

**Table of Contents**

**Volume I: _The Early Years_ (Chapters 1-)**

**Dragon Ball Saga (Chapters 1-3)**  
Part 1: Refugees  
Part 2: Culture Shock  
Part 3: Warrior's Pride


	2. Culture Shock

**Disclaimer: Dragon Ball, Dragon Ball Z, Dragon Ball GT and their respective franchises are the property of Funimation, Toei Animation, Fuji TV and Akira Toriyama.**

**.**

**Dragon Ball Saga, Part 2: Culture Shock**

_Kame House_

_Planet Earth_

_Age 737_

Vegeta groaned audibly as he walked through the front door of Kame House. "You have _got_ to be kidding me," he muttered. "This is it?"

Roshi, following him inside, looked mildly offended. "Would you mind not insulting my house?" he asked. "It may not look like much, but it's got everything you might need."

Vegeta glanced back at him coolly. "Somehow, I doubt that." He glanced around again and sighed. "Okay, fine. Is there a bedroom I can use? And a shower?"

"Ah, yeah, there's a spare bedroom upstairs," Roshi replied. "And the shower's in the bathroom, through there." He pointed to a door on his left.

Vegeta nodded. "Very well, then." Turning, he walked briskly across the room and disappeared into the bathroom, closing the door behind him.

Roshi stared at the closed door for a moment, his eyes wide in surprise. _Seriously, who _is_ this kid?!_

.

It took several minutes for Vegeta to figure out how to work Roshi's shower, but once he'd gotten the hang of it, he spent a considerable amount of time washing off the assorted grime that had accumulated on his body during his long voyage to Earth.

_Okay, I need a plan,_ the young Saiyan thought to himself as water dripped off of his spiky black hair. _I should be able to pick up the signal from Kakarot's pod and track him down. But before I do… I need to know more about this planet, since I might be living here for a long time. And I'm betting that this guy can tell me everything I need to know._

Vegeta nodded in satisfaction. _Okay, it's decided. I'll stay here for a while and learn as much as I can, while using the pod's instruments to find the spot where Kakarot landed. Then I'll go find him._

The young prince's eyes narrowed as he glanced around the shower. _Something's missing here…_

"Hey, Earthling! Where's the cleansing powder?"

"Sorry, I don't know what that is!" Roshi called from the other room. "All I have is soap!"

"What the hell is soap?"

.

Once he had gotten out of the shower, Vegeta dried himself off with a towel that Roshi had provided. He put on clothes that had been laid out for him – an oversized white T-shirt and tan beach shorts – and made his way out to the front room.

Roshi, who had been laying out a meal, greeted him in a friendly way. "Ah, good, the clothes fit. I hoped they would; I don't have much lying around that would fit you."

Vegeta shrugged. "Where did you put my armor?" he asked.

"I was going to wash it," Roshi replied, pointing to a laundry basket near the closet. Vegeta's blue bodysuit and white armor was visible in the basket, stacked on top of some of Roshi's shirts.

"Fine." Turning, Vegeta hopped easily into a seat next to the table. "Do you have any food here?"

"As a matter of fact, I just caught some fish this morning," Roshi replied. "Would you like some?"

"Obviously."

Once Roshi had prepared some freshly cooked fish, he set a large plate down in front of Vegeta. The boy stared incredulously at the food, then looked back up at Roshi. His eyebrows furrowed. "That's _it?_"

Roshi was taken aback; he hadn't expected a boy this young to eat much. "Well, yes," he replied. "There's more, if you'd like some, but I figured you wouldn't need any more than this."

Vegeta scowled. "You have got to be kidding me," he snapped. "I could eat more than this as a snack!"

Roshi frowned. "Really?" he inquired, skeptical.

"Oh, forget it." Grumbling under his breath, Vegeta promptly tore into the fish in front of him, not bothering to use a fork or knife. The child's appetite was extraordinary; he gobbled down food as if he hadn't eaten in a year. Within a minute, he had cleaned his plate, and then looked back up at Roshi, a smear of grease on his face. "More," he demanded.

For several seconds, Roshi stared, dumbstruck, at Vegeta. "How the heck did you do that?" he asked incredulously. "_I_ couldn't eat that much food anywhere near that fast!"

Vegeta shrugged. "Then our species must have different metabolisms; that much food is just a snack for me. And, considering that I've been in stasis for most of the past six months, I've worked up quite an appetite." He frowned. "How much food do you have here, by the way?"

Roshi raised an eyebrow. "Based on how quickly you ate that; not enough."

"Great," Vegeta muttered, scowling.

.

After they'd finished eating, Vegeta made his way back out to the beach, where he clambered inside the crashed space pod and began working on the internal machinery. A string of muttering, metallic _clangs_, and muffled curses began echoing from within the craft.

Roshi sat down cross-legged on the sand near the crater, listening to the boy as he continued working. The old martial artist was trying to explore something that he'd sensed from Vegeta earlier; for a moment, when the so-called prince had become irritated at the lack of food earlier, his ki had spiked abruptly, rising higher than anything Roshi had ever sensed. He had no idea whether it had been some kind of error in his ki-sensing ability, or if the kid really was somehow that powerful, but he needed to find out.

"How's it going?" he inquired.

"Fine," Vegeta replied brusquely.

"Do you need any help?"

There was a momentary silence, and then Vegeta poked his head out through the open hatch. "Do you have any experience with alien spacecraft?" he asked, raising one eyebrow.

Roshi considered that for a moment. "Ah… no, I don't."

Vegeta nodded. "I thought not. In that case, no; I don't need any help." He withdrew inside the pod and went back to work, mumbling to himself again as he checked various components of the ship.

A few minutes passed by, during which the occasional cursing that was mingled with Vegeta's muttering became more and more frequent.

"Are you okay in there?" Roshi spoke up again.

Once again, Vegeta poked his head out through the hatch, wiping a grease stain off his forehead with the back of one hand. "Fine," he answered.

Roshi looked at him quizzically. "If you don't mind my asking, what is it you're doing in there?"

Vegeta sighed, clambering out of the craft and making his way up the side of the crater in the sand. "I'm trying to fix this." He held up the device that he'd been wearing on his head when he'd exited his ship; the lens was cracked, and the device itself appeared to have shorted out. "My scouter broke when I crashed; I was trying to find any components in my ship's communications system that I could use to repair it. Unfortunately, I haven't been able to find anything." He sighed, sitting down dejectedly on the sand. "If I can't get the damn thing to work, then I'll never be able to find Kakarot."

"Uh… sorry, who's Kakarot?"

Vegeta glanced over at Roshi. "Kakarot is a Saiyan, like me. He's the only other Saiyan on this planet, actually; he should have gotten here at around the same time that I did, but obviously he landed in another part of the planet."

"And you can use that thing to find him?" Roshi asked curiously.

"If I can fix it, then yes, I can use it to home in on the signal from his pod." Vegeta thought for a moment. "And I'd better do it soon, because I'm going to have to live on this planet for a considerable amount of time, and if he tries to carry out his mission, that's going to make things very difficult for me."

"Mission?" Roshi frowned. "What mission?"

Vegeta sighed. "Oh, for God's sake… all right, I'm only going to tell you this once, so pay attention. Saiyans – that's the species that Kakarot and I both belong to – are a race of powerful warriors. We work for an organization known as the Planet Trade Organization, which is ruled by a being known as Frieza. Our missions are to exterminate the populations of planets, so that they can be sold on the market to potential buyers. That's why Kakarot was sent here; his mission is to grow up on this planet, and then to destroy its inhabitants once he's old enough."

Roshi stared at him, wide-eyed and aghast. "_What?_" he gasped.

"You heard me." Vegeta smirked. "Fortunately for you, I need this planet intact, since I doubt I'll be leaving anytime soon. But that's why I need to find Kakarot, so I can call him off before he can begin his mission to wipe out all life on this planet."

Roshi gulped. "Ah. I see. So, is this Kakarot person as powerful as you, then?"

Vegeta scoffed. "Hardly. I'm an elite Saiyan, heir to the throne of our race. Kakarot is a low-class warrior, greatly inferior in power and status; not to mention, he's only an infant. His power is nothing compared to mine at the moment." Then he frowned, noting something odd. "Wait… how did you know how powerful I am? You don't have a scouter or another device like one, and I haven't done anything that would require me to use my real strength, so how could you tell?"

"I could sense it," Roshi explained. "When you got angry, your ki spiked higher than anything I've ever sensed before."

"Ki?" Vegeta's brow furrowed. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Ah, you must have a different word for it." Roshi nodded understandingly. "Ki is the term for a living being's spiritual energy; its life force. All living things have ki: plants, insects, us. The stronger you are, the more ki you have. If people are aware of their ki, they can learn how to sense it, as I have."

_So, by "ki", he's just talking about energy, the same thing we use to measure power levels…_ Vegeta's eyes widened. _Does that mean he can sense energy without a scouter? Is that possible?_

"This actually makes sense," he said in realization. "The device I'm trying to fix – we call it a scouter – does a variety of things, but one of its uses is to detect the energy of living beings; ki, you called it. When I scan someone with it, it analyzes the energy within their body and uses it to designate their power level, a measurement of how strong they are."

"Interesting," Roshi murmured. "So, technology can be used to sense ki." _Must be an inefficient method, considering that you might as well be blind without one of those devices…_

"Yeah, basically." Vegeta shrugged. "Another reason why I need to get this thing working." He tapped the scouter impatiently with one hand, but it remained silent.

That was when an idea occurred to him. "Hang on…" He looked up at Roshi. "Did you say that you know how to sense energy without using a scouter?"

After a moment, Roshi nodded. "Ah… yes, I do."

An eager glint entered Vegeta's eyes. "Could you teach me?"

Roshi's eyes widened in surprise. "Teach you?" He stared at the boy, considering the possibility. "Well, it would take time, and it requires intense concentration…"

"That won't be a problem." Vegeta casually waved off the old martial artist's excuses. "I have yet to meet a challenge that I couldn't overcome. As for time, well…" He indicated their surroundings and the crashed pod with a sweep of his hand. "It's not like I'm going anywhere anytime soon, is it?"

After a moment, Roshi nodded. "All right, then. I'll train you."

"Excellent." Vegeta smirked. "Let's get started."

.

Roshi and Vegeta stood on the beach, facing each other. The waves washed gently against the shore, the steady rushing sound echoing in their ears. Seagulls flew overhead, their cawing ringing out.

"So how do we do this?" Vegeta inquired.

"Well," Roshi explained, "first, I want to test your abilities. Then we can get started on your real training."

The young prince sighed. "What do we do first?"

"Show me your power." Roshi's expression was serious. "Your _real_ power. I need to know what I have to work with here."

Vegeta shrugged. "Fine with me. You may want to take a step back, though."

Heeding his warning, Roshi took a few steps back, raising his guard and bracing himself.

Narrowing his eyes, Vegeta held his arms out to the sides and crouched slightly, clenching his hands into fists. A faint breeze whispered through the air, ruffling his hair.

"Hrrr…" he growled. "Rrrr…rrrRRAAGGHH!" His power climbed rapidly, a blue aura flaring to life around him as his ki continued to increase. A strong wind burst outwards from him, swirling the sand around his feet. Roshi staggered backwards, trying to maintain his balance.

"HRAAAH!" Vegeta yelled, bringing all of his strength to the surface as he powered up to maximum. A blast of light burst outwards from within his body, hurling Roshi backwards. For a moment, it felt as if the entire beach was shaking.

Then the light died down, returning to normal levels. Vegeta's aura faded as he powered back down to normal.

"So," he said. "How was that?"

Roshi picked himself up, groaning and brushing sand off of his clothes; the shockwave had flung him halfway down the beach, tumbling head over heels. He gawked incredulously at Vegeta. "You're _that_ strong? That's insane; I've never felt anything like that before!"

"Well, that means that I'm definitely the strongest person on this rock," Vegeta muttered. "Which means I don't have anyone worthwhile to fight." He sighed. "Great. This is going to be _boring_, on top of everything else."

Roshi frowned, approaching the boy again. "You wanted to fight someone?"

"Of course!" Vegeta exclaimed. "That's what Saiyans do, what we live for! Fighting powerful opponents and growing stronger is one of the greatest joys for us; we love the thrill of battle!" His eyes gleamed with enthusiasm, which quickly faded. "Which is why my stay on this planet is probably going to be very uninteresting."

"Well, I wouldn't say that," Roshi replied. "I do happen to have quite a bit of strength of my own, which is why I'm so good at training people how to harness their ki." He grinned proudly. "As a matter of fact, I'm widely known as one of the greatest martial arts masters on this planet; and, as a result, I've become one of the strongest people in the world."

Vegeta raised an eyebrow. "_You're_ one of the strongest people on this planet?"

"As a matter of fact, I am," the old martial artist countered. "Obviously not as strong as you, considering that I can compare the power I felt from you to my own, but I think I'm pretty strong myself."

"Okay, then." The prince folded his arms over his chest. "Show me."

Roshi settled into a crouch, clenching his own fists and summoning up his ki. "Rrr… YAAAHH!" His own power rose rapidly, and a faint white aura flickered around his body, swirling up the sand again.

To his surprise, Vegeta actually smiled. "I'm impressed," he said, raising his voice to be heard over the wind kicked up by Roshi's aura. "I can't sense your energy, obviously, but I can tell you've got some decent power." He altered his stance, clenching his hands into fists and digging his feet into the sand. "I'll tell you what. How about this; I'll let you train me, if you let me see what you're made of."

Roshi contemplated that for a moment. "All right," he decided, assuming a fighting stance. "But you'll have to go easy on me; my power's nowhere near your level."

"Agreed. I'll start at my minimum power." Vegeta settled further into his own stance, bracing himself. "Come at me."

"Very well." With a yell, Roshi kicked off the sand and propelled himself forward, leaping at Vegeta with a flying kick. Just before impact, however, the young boy's arm snapped up, effortlessly blocking the blow.

Roshi jumped back, staring in shock at Vegeta. _Wow,_ he thought. _He really is incredible!_

Vegeta smirked. "My turn." He shot forward, moving so fast that Roshi barely even saw him move, and swung a right hook, aimed at the old man's head for a quick knockout blow.

Before the blow could connect, however, Roshi ducked backwards, pushing off the ground with his hands and landing a full-force kick to the left side of Vegeta's head. The impact shoved the young prince's head around to the side, but didn't inflict any damage.

"Not bad," the boy remarked, before he seized Roshi's ankles, spun around once, and then let go, hurling him away. Roshi managed to regain control, powering up to maximum and turning his fall into a series of backflips, before skidding to a halt on his feet. Before he'd even managed to run back towards Vegeta, however, the young prince appeared in front of him, launching a series of kicks and punches.

While the Saiyan boy's combination of smaller size and much greater power would normally have been insurmountable, the fact that he was only using his minimum power meant that the two of them were fairly even in terms of strength. And Roshi had spent his life battling many different enemies, some of which had exceeded his own power by a wide margin. He had more fighting experience than anyone he knew, and that would serve him well here.

To an observer, the scene would have looked bizarre; Roshi was dancing backwards across the beach, dodging and deflecting Vegeta's attacks, both of them moving so fast that their forms seemed to blur. For the most part, the Turtle Hermit didn't bother launching any direct attacks, instead waiting patiently for the boy to leave an opening.

_Damn it!_ Vegeta thought in frustration, continuing his assault to little success. _Why can't I hit him? Judging by that kick, he can't be much stronger than I am at my minimum power, so what the hell is going on?!_

After about thirty seconds, Roshi's moment came; Vegeta grinned, angling in for a spinning kick with his right leg, and leaving himself open in the process. Roshi immediately lunged forward, focusing his ki into his right fist and landing a full-force punch directly to the prince's face, just as Vegeta's knee slammed into his gut.

A resounding _boom_ echoed over the beach, and both fighters hit the ground.

Vegeta clambered to his feet, brushing sand off of himself. He glanced over to where Roshi was groaning and trying to pick himself up. And, to the old martial artist's surprise, he grinned. "Impressive," he admitted. "How did you manage to dodge my attacks? I know you must be at least as strong as I am at my minimum, but based on the strength of those hits, you're not _that_ strong." His eyebrows furrowed. "So how did you do that?"

"Simple; I'm several hundred years old." Roshi shrugged, sitting up on the sand. "I've been a martial artist for most of my life, and when you live to be as old as I am, you learn a few tricks. In this case, I was able to use my experience, and the fact that you don't know anything about how I fight, to make up for my lack of raw power."

The Saiyan child was actually impressed; this man had a fighting style that was unlike anything he'd ever seen before, and it had actually proven challenging. "Not bad, Earthman. I'm curious; how did you learn to fight like that?"

Roshi raised an eyebrow. "Well, if you want, I could teach you."

Vegeta frowned. "Really? You'd be willing to teach me your techniques, even after I've told you that my people destroy planets for profit?"

The hermit grinned. "You _did_ tell me that, yeah. But that's your _people_, not _you_. See, I've always been able to read people fairly well, once I get to know them. And trust me when I say this, Vegeta; you could be a great man someday, if you're willing to put in the effort." His expression was open and honest, and there was conviction in his eyes. "With power like yours, if you can control it properly… you could be a hero."

Vegeta snorted. "If you've been alive for as long as you claim, old man, then you should know; there's no such thing as heroes." He smirked in amusement. "But I will let you teach me your martial arts, if only because your skills intrigue me, and I'll need something to pass the time until I can locate Kakarot."

Inwardly, Roshi sighed. This was going to take a while. Outwardly, however, he retained a pleasant attitude, and smiled at the child standing in front of him.

"Right, then," he decided, holding out his right hand. "Do we have a deal?"

The Saiyan prince looked at the old man's outstretched hand for a long moment, as if he was still making up his mind.

And then, after a moment, he nodded, and shook Roshi's hand.

"We have a deal," he agreed.

.

_AN: And here we are again! I'm so sorry it's taken such a long time for me to update; hopefully this chapter made up for it! This chapter isn't all that exciting, but it should get much more interesting as the story goes on. And, with any luck, the next chapter shouldn't take nearly as long to finish._

_Shoutouts to DiscoStu09, Itami Saiyan, Full Power, euroteres, Ultimate Black Ace, applefanfic, pokeball645, ShadowLDrago, BlackAeronaut, Ryu no Ohi and BaltaineShadow for reviewing; you guys are awesome!_

_As always, I tremendously appreciate feedback on my work, so if you have a comment or question regarding this chapter or the story as a whole, please review! (No hate, please)._

_Next chapter, Vegeta and Roshi begin their official training, and Vegeta makes progress in his plan to locate Kakarot… stay tuned!_

_See you next time!_

_Review Q&amp;A:_

_Q: __Nice start! I am eagerly looking forward to the changes that are made because of Vegeta._

_A: Yeah, there will definitely be a lot of changes; some will be small, but others will turn out to be very major._

_Q: you're idea is awesome i hope you update soon as i am thrilled from the first chapter_

_A: Thanks! I hope you enjoyed this chapter!_

_Q: I really like this idea, actually, and your writing is great. I'm excited to see where this story goes, especially with Vegeta as early student of Roshi..Goku landed in same place as in canon? Neat. Alright, let's see what happens!_

_A: Yes, Vegeta's relationship with Roshi will definitely be very different from Goku's. And yeah, Goku landed in the same place as he did in canon._

_Q: Oh this is going to be fun, I can feel it._

_A: Oh, yes. Yes, it is._

_Q: __I think that this is a very interesting idea, I'd love to see where it goes and what differences it makes in the overall DBZ universe. You also have good writing and grammar skills._

_Probably one of my only concerns is actually Vegeta, or rather his power. As a child he was apparently already stronger than Saibamen, able to take several on at once without trouble, which, provided that they were as strong as Canon Raditz, makes him much stronger than anything the Earth can throw at him for a while. Therefore, I'm worried that he won't be challenged for quite a while. I'm just hoping that you've accounted for this in your plans for the story._

_A: Well, there will definitely be some major differences as a result; we'll have to wait and see what exactly is changed._

_And yes, I have accounted for Vegeta's power in my plans for this story. Currently, he's slightly stronger than canon Raditz at full power, and slightly above Roshi at minimum power. I'd say that his skill, rather than his power, was the reason that he was able to take on multiple Saibamen at once; let's say that each Saibaman is at 1200 (since they're each equal to Raditz), and Vegeta is currently at about 1500 at maximum. So, yeah, he's stronger than basically anything that we'll see in the early part of _Dragon Ball_, but that doesn't mean he won't face challenges._

_Q: Intresting... I like this story! Update soon._

_A: Thanks, sorry it took so long!_

_Q: This is a very good start, I can't wait until Vegeta meets up with Kakarot, I mean Goku._

_A: Yeah, that'll definitely be an interesting experience for him._

_Q: Is it wrong that I imagine their TFS voices? This should prove interesting, this is a rather unique idea. I like._

_A: No, either their TFS or Funimation voices would definitely work for the characters._

_Q: What? Only one chapter? What a tease! :p_

_Honestly, though, it is an interesting, and yet, believable change from the original story line. I would honestly love to see how young Prince Vegita deals handles living with Master Roshi._

_A: Yeah, it's definitely going to be an interesting dynamic._

_Q: An interesting take on a common premise, &amp; so far, the first chapter is coherent &amp; well-written. No spelling errors! Vegeta's arrival on Master Roshi's island maybe could have been fleshed out more, but I'm guessing you'll do that in the next installment. Good job thus far!_

_A: Thanks! Yeah, I made an effort to flesh it out more in this chapter, and develop how Vegeta and Roshi interact. They're so different that, in some ways, they can play off each other very well._

_Q: I think your story has a very interesting concept - but now the question is: what are you going to do with it? It's been a while since you posted this - great - chapter... :)_

_I hope you will update soon!_

_Greetings,  
Baltaine_

_A: Yeah, sorry it's taken me so long to update. Hopefully this chapter made up for it!_


	3. Warrior's Pride

**Disclaimer: Dragon Ball, Dragon Ball Z, Dragon Ball GT and their respective franchises are the property of Funimation, Toei Animation, Fuji TV and Akira Toriyama.**

**.**

**Dragon Ball Saga, Part 3: Warrior's Pride**

_Planet Frieza 263_

_Age 738_

A Saiyan Attack Pod sped through the blackness of space, rapidly approaching the planet. A fiery corona surrounded it as it entered the atmosphere, streaking towards the surface.

After a few minutes, the pod neared its destination: a large city of domed white buildings.

The spherical vessel began to decelerate, until it finally slammed down onto one of the landing pads with a resounding impact. A thunderclap echoed across the military base.

The pod's hatch opened with a hiss, and a tall, muscular figure emerged. The armored soldiers who had been waiting to greet the pod's occupant backed away nervously.

Summoning up some courage, one of the soldiers approached him. "Ah, General, it's good to see you! Welcome to Planet Frieza 263."

"Save it." General Nappa cut the soldier off with a wave of his hand. "Get out of my way." Brushing past the soldiers, he strode into the building, calling back, "I want that pod ready to fly and fully restocked with food supplies and fuel in two hours, got it?"

"Uh… yes, sir!" With that, the soldiers hurried off to begin the work.

Ignoring them, Nappa entered the base, tapping his scouter to locate the individual he'd come there to find. Within a few seconds, the scouter beeped, confirming the location.

With a grin, the bald Saiyan continued on his way, heading down several hallways until he reached the entrance to a training room. The door was closed, and the light above it was glowing green, indicating that the room was currently in use.

Nappa didn't bother knocking; he simply hit the button on the wall, opening the door, and walked in.

He entered the room just in time to hear a yell, as a young boy with knee-length, untamed black hair leaped across the room, swinging kicks and punches at the air. He rebounded off the wall, firing an energy blast that detonated against the ceiling and was immediately absorbed as the room's inbuilt defense systems redirected the energy to the base's power supply.

Observing the boy's continued training, Nappa cleared his throat loudly. "Raditz?" he called.

The young Saiyan reacted in surprise, whipping around to face Nappa and skidding to a halt on the metal floor. "General Nappa!" he said in surprise, dropping to one knee and inclining his head in a gesture of respect.

"Oh, get up," Nappa said. "We don't need to rest on ceremony here."

"Ah… okay, sir." Raditz rose to his feet. "I hadn't expected to see you here."

"Well, normally I wouldn't be," Nappa replied, "but I was looking for you." He sighed. "I suppose you've heard that our planet was destroyed."

Raditz stood motionless for a moment, looking downcast. "Yes… yes, I did." His eyes closed for a moment. "My family…"

Nappa nodded. "I know, kid. But we can't let this weaken us. The two of us need to stick together right now; we're the only Saiyans left. We're all that's left of our race."

The younger Saiyan's eyes widened in alarm. "We're the last? But… what about Prince Vegeta? I heard you were looking after him."

"I was," Nappa agreed, "but, shortly after we received word that the planet was destroyed… he disappeared. I've spent most of the past year looking for him, but I couldn't find him anywhere. Personally, I…" He sighed. "I don't think I'm going to find him. I don't want to think the worst, so I'm hoping that he's just on a mission somewhere, but no one I've talked to knows where he is either."

"So, you think he might…" Raditz trailed off, a look of fear on his face.

"Yeah." Nappa nodded soberly.

There was silence for a long moment; then Raditz spoke up. "So… what do we do now, sir?"

Nappa had been turning the situation over in his mind, going over every possible course of action. When he thought about it, there were really only two options; he could return to his normal life as a soldier under Frieza, or…

"We train," he said firmly. "We push ourselves to the limits, and we get as strong as we possibly can. It's just us now; no planet, no prince or king looking over our shoulder to tell us what to do. We're the only ones left. And I swear to you, Raditz; we're going to honor everyone we lost."

Raditz looked up, a hint of eagerness on his face. "Do you really think we can do it, sir?" he asked.

"Of course we can." Nappa flashed a confident grin. "We're gonna get strong enough that we'll never have to rely on anyone else again."

_And_, he added silently, _if I get the chance someday, I'll make that coward Frieza pay for everything he's ever done to our race._ His black eyes narrowed. _And that's a promise._

.

_Kame House_

_Planet Earth_

_Age 738_

Master Roshi woke up at sunrise, as was his custom. The old martial artist glanced around the room, letting out a sigh as he stretched and leisurely clambered out of bed, pulling on beige shorts and a blue Hawaiian shirt.

As he entered the kitchen, a sound caught his ear; a faint shout, coming from outside. He made his way over to the window and looked outside, squinting against the glare of the rising sun.

Silhouetted against that light, he saw a figure dashing back and forth across the beach, throwing kicks and punches into the air. The figure was constantly in motion; ducking, rolling, backflipping, jumping, never stopping in one place for more than a few moments at a time.

Roshi groaned. "I'm getting too old for this," he muttered.

Vegeta's dedication to training had amazed the older man. The Saiyan boy had spent the majority of his time since he'd reached the island either training, eating, or continuing his efforts to repair his damaged spaceship and scouter. Unfortunately, he still hadn't managed to get his communication systems up and running, as Kame House had very little in the way of useful mechanical tools for him to use. The island was also hundreds of miles from the nearest populated area, making it nearly impossible for them to get any other supplies.

As a result, Vegeta had been living on the island for over a year, and still wasn't any closer to finding this other Saiyan than he had been originally.

With a yell, the boy spun, shoving one hand outwards and launching a powerful _kiai_. The invisible wave of force slammed into the ocean, kicking up a shower of seawater that fell like rain all around him. As if this marked the end of his session, he stood motionless, gazing out to sea for a long moment. Steam rose from his body and clothes as his power evaporated the water on his skin, cooling him.

Turning, Vegeta strode back across the beach towards Kame House. He was wearing the clothes that Roshi had made for him; a downsized version of the martial arts master's custom, orange-and-blue Turtle School gi, with the addition of his white boots and gloves. As usual, everything he was wearing, with the exception of his orange pants and dark blue undershirt, contained heavy weights, designed to make training more difficult. It didn't have much effect on him, of course, but the prince was determined to get as much out of his training as possible. The lack of challenges was grating on his nerves; his Saiyan instincts longed for a battle, but Roshi's training would have to do.

"Morning, Vegeta," Roshi greeted him as the boy entered the house.

Vegeta grunted noncommittally and headed straight for the shower, closing and locking the door behind him.

Shrugging, the old human turned back to the fish he was preparing for breakfast. _I swear, I'll never understand that one…_

.

Over breakfast, Vegeta once again pressed Roshi with further questions about his fighting experiences and techniques. The Saiyan child learned extremely quickly, and Roshi was hard-pressed to keep him interested in training.

Vegeta's training had been unconventional, to say the least. His power far exceeded Roshi's, even when the old martial artist was fighting all-out, so training him to increase his strength had been a futile exercise.

Roshi had initially tried his standard training method, but the weighted turtle shells he normally used were basically useless. So he'd altered his method, focusing on training Vegeta's fighting skills rather than his strength. He had managed to teach the young prince how to sense energy, and Vegeta had spent a considerable amount of time honing that skill already.

The boy frowned. "So, what was that technique you were telling me about a few days ago?" he asked. "The Kamahame, or something?"

"The Kamehameha," Roshi corrected with a smile. "It's my most powerful technique. Took me fifty years to learn that one, but I've never regretted taking the time to master it."

Vegeta's eyes widened. "Can anyone learn it?" he inquired.

The older man considered that. "Well, I suppose so, yes… but, as I said, it's quite difficult to learn."

A grin spread across the young Saiyan's face. "Could you teach me how to use it?"

Roshi was caught off-guard. "I… well, I could try, but I'm not sure if you could learn it. I mean, you've only recently learned how to sense energy, and, as I said, it took me fifty years… but I can try."

"Excellent." There was an eager glint in Vegeta's eyes. "Let's do it."

.

After finishing their meal, Roshi joined Vegeta on the beach outside Kame House. The steady rushing sound of the waves washing against the sandy shore, combined with the salty sea air, created a peaceful atmosphere.

"Right, then," Vegeta said, watching Roshi expectantly. "How does this technique of yours work?"

"Here, watch. I'll demonstrate." With that, Roshi shrugged off his Hawaiian shirt and tossed it aside, before turning to face the ocean and settling into the familiar stance. He held both arms out in front of him, bringing his hands together with his right hand over his left, his palms facing each other. His fingers curved inward, focusing his energy into the palms of his hands.

"Ka…" Roshi murmured. "Me…" He pulled his hands back, holding them by his right side, and focused his energy more intensely. A faint blue glow began to flicker between his hands.

Vegeta looked on with interest. _What's he doing?_

"Ha…" Roshi's eyes narrowed, the blue light between his hands brightening. "Me…" He growled, his muscles flexing, and powered up to maximum, a white aura flickering around him. The loose sand around his feet was swirled around by his aura, a wind expanding outwards.

And then, with a yell, the old martial artist's muscles bulged outwards massively, and a burst of power blasted outwards from him.

The young Saiyan's eyes widened in surprise, and he actually took a step back. _What the hell is this? How is he doing that?_

Roshi's eyes narrowed to slits as he continued to charge up energy, waiting until his power was built up to its maximum.

His eyes opened wide. _Now._

"HAAA!" With that, Roshi swung his hands forward, launching a powerful blue energy beam. The Kamehameha wave crashed into the ocean about half a mile offshore and detonated, sending a massive eruption of water bursting upwards.

Powering back down to normal, Roshi exhaled slowly as his muscles diminished back to their regular size. He glanced over to Vegeta, and was surprised to see that the Saiyan boy was grinning.

"That was impressive!" he complimented. "I didn't think you had that much power, and that's a potent technique." His eyes gleamed enthusiastically. "I have to test that one out."

"Well, all right. By all means, give it a try." Roshi smiled. "But don't be surprised if it doesn't work properly the first time."

"No problem." Vegeta turned to face the ocean and dug his feet into the sand. "Now, the attack chant is 'Ka, me, ha, me, ha,' right?"

"Right," Roshi affirmed.

"Got it." Vegeta bent his knees slightly, crouching, and held both arms out in front of him, carefully mimicking Roshi's stance. "Ka…" He began focusing his energy into the palms of his hands, concentrating it as he'd seen the old martial artist do. "Me…"

Roshi retrieved his Hawaiian shirt from where it had fallen, shook off the sand, and watched with interest as he slipped it back on. _I know he's got a massive amount of power, but even so, I'm not sure if he can master the Kamehameha as quickly as he's taken to everything else._

"Ha…" Still mirroring Roshi, Vegeta lowered his hands to his side, letting his ki flow into his hands, and out into the air between his palms. His blue-white aura flared to life, a gust of wind blowing outwards from his body and whipping up the sand. "_Me…_"

Despite his doubts, Roshi's eyes widened in amazement. _No… he can't _really_ be about to…_

Vegeta swung his hands forward. "HAAAA!"

A large blue beam of energy, at least twice the size of Roshi's earlier Kamehameha, burst from the Saiyan's hands. It carved a trench through the ocean, blasting the water backwards in a line for at least a mile, before the energy finally detonated with a distant, echoing _boom_. The water rushed back in, quickly filling the empty space that had been left behind.

Vegeta remained standing, his steaming hands still extended in the direction of the attack. "So… how was that?"

Roshi had been hurled backwards by the shockwave; he picked himself up, gazing incredulously at his student. "How did you do that?!" he exclaimed. "That shouldn't be possible!"

Dusting off his hands, the prince grinned. "I'm a Saiyan; it's easier for us to pick up new techniques than it is for many other races, since we're genetically built to fight and grow stronger." He turned to face the older man, a smirk on his face. "That's an impressive technique, I'll admit. I'll have to master that one; it might come in handy someday." Strolling past Roshi, he headed back towards the house.

Roshi remained standing on the beach for a long moment, gazing out at the spot where Vegeta's attack had detonated.

_How could he possibly have managed to do that?_ he thought as he turned and followed the boy back towards Kame House. _It took me fifty years to learn the Kamehameha, and he does it first try?!_

He frowned. _I'll have to be careful with him… he could be extremely dangerous if he chose._

.

_Three months later…_

Vegeta sat cross-legged on the beach, his eyes closed in meditation. The prince had taken to waking up before dawn to do this, as he enjoyed the cool night air.

It had been almost a year and a half since he'd landed on this planet, and he still had no idea where Kakarot was. The scouter was still broken; nothing he could find in the pod had been able to fix it. And without the homing device in it, he had no way of finding the other Saiyan child's space pod.

Other problems had presented themselves. Although he had continued his rigorous training, Vegeta had found that he wasn't getting much stronger. There were two very simple reasons for that. First, the fact that he was, by far, the strongest being on this planet meant that no one could give him a decent fight, unless he deliberately held back, and therefore he had no challenges and no way to increase his power. Second, the gravity on this planet, as the pod's scientific instruments had informed him, was only one-tenth that of Planet Vegeta. As a result, Vegeta felt much lighter than he did on his home planet. While this meant that flying was now much easier for him, it also decreased the efficiency of his training.

Suddenly, a faint beeping noise echoed through the air, snapping the prince out of his meditative trance. Blinking curiously, he turned, glancing around the beach. Nothing was in sight, but the noise continued.

That was when Vegeta recognized the sound; it was the alarm from his Attack Pod's computer.

Turning in surprise, the Saiyan boy dashed across the beach towards the small wooden shed that he and Roshi had built to house the Attack Pod. The sound was definitely coming from inside.

Lifting the latch, Vegeta opened the shed's door and ducked inside, hurrying over to the pod and tapping the button that opened its hatch.

With the pod open, he could clearly see the source of the noise; one of the interior screens had lit up, showing an image of the planet that had been taken when his pod had scanned it from orbit upon his arrival. A glowing red dot was present on the screen, indicating the position of Vegeta's pod, which was still in the same place it had been since he'd arrived.

Now, however, a second glowing dot had appeared, this one hundreds of miles to the northeast. The new dot was flashing repeatedly, each flash coinciding with another _beep_ from the pod's alarm.

Slipping into the pilot's seat, Vegeta tapped a button, silencing the alarm, and homed in on the signal's source. He couldn't get much better resolution, but it was enough that he was able to pinpoint the location.

A grin spread across his face. _Yes!_ He clenched one hand into a fist, excitement welling up inside him.

"Looks like I've finally found you, Kakarot," he murmured. "It's about time."

.

_AN: Hello, everyone! Sorry it's taken me so long to update; I've been busy moving and settling into college lately, so I haven't had much time to write. Hopefully I should have the next chapter up soon._

_Shoutouts to mellra, rabidjack, ShadowLDrago, Zyphrost, Blazingnyancat, Jokermask18, cara9001, NNP, Guest (1), Guest (2), DiscoStu09, Flameraven1, BaltaineShadow, okroniiclez, and Guest (3) for reviewing! You guys are awesome!_

_As always, I tremendously appreciate getting feedback on my work, so if you have a comment or question regarding this chapter or the story as a whole, please review! (Constructive criticism is fine, but no hate, please.)_

_Next chapter, Vegeta finally meets up with Kakarot… but what will he find when he gets there? Stay tuned!_

_See you next time!_

_Review Q&amp;A:_

_Q:__ Interesting idea! I wonder though, what will become of Nappa and Raditz when Vegeta's not around? Also, will Vegeta and Bulma get together like they did in canon, at first seeming like they hate each other but later fall in 'love' (or at least as much as Vegeta can love someone)? Now, I have this idea and I wonder if you'd apply it to this story:_

_You see, I'm working with Dimension Distorter on a DB fanfic entitled 'Monkey See, Monkey Do' where the bump on the head Goku got as a child not only erased his aggressive Saiyan nature, it also enabled him to retain his mind in his Great Ape form. My idea for this story though, is that when Vegeta meets up with Goku, he'll be able to teach our favorite Earth raised Saiyan how to control himself in that form. Personally, I always liked that transformation in all the DB series, and I was upset when they all but got rid of the idea after the Saiyan Saga. Sure they brought it back a bit in GT, but not for long and the overall plot of GT kinda killed the mood a bit. I just always thought it be cool if Goku ever learned to control himself in that form, and it would open all kinds of opportunities in the future chapers! _

_I've gotta ask, would Master Roshi be more of a challenge if he went full power (like full power Kamehameha) against Vegeta? Also, the only way I can see this story in a way that it won't simply be Vegeta KOing all the DB villians is that he'll sit back and let Goku do most of the grunt work as a 'training experience' since he'll need Goku to be as strong as possible when they go against Frieza, only stepping in when it is necessary. Final thought, if Vegeta and Bulma do get together sooner than in canon, does that mean Trunks will be more Gohan's age? Or will he be born at a later date?_

_This is a really cool story idea and I can't wait to see where you take it!_

_A: Well, this chapter should have helped to show you guys what Nappa and Raditz are up to. As for Vegeta and Bulma, we'll have to wait and see what happens when they meet; they may not be very friendly to begin with._

_Regarding Oozaru; well, I may do something along those lines (in fact, spoiler warning; there will be at least one Oozaru scene in the fairly new future). Remember, though, Vegeta is only about six or seven years old by this point (he seems a lot more mature than his actual age would indicate), so he may not have that much control over the Oozaru transformation either…_

_Yeah, Roshi would be more of a challenge for Vegeta if he went full power (the bulked-up version, which he actually uses in this chapter), but not by enough to make much of a difference if Vegeta was fighting seriously. And no, it won't just be Vegeta KO'ing all of the _Dragon Ball_ villains; I'll be doing my best to make this story as interesting as possible for everyone. For Trunks, I won't say anything yet; that would verge on spoilers._

_Thanks, I'm glad you're enjoying this story! Be sure to let me know what you thought of this chapter!_

_Q: __I'm loving this idea for a DBZ story. Will Vegeta find Goku before or after he falls off the cliff and represses his Saiyan side? It might be cool if he grows up as 'Kakarot' instead of 'Goku'. Anyway, happy that this concept is being presented in a will written way, thanks for the update!_

_A: We'll find out next chapter whether Goku has hit his head yet or not; thanks, I'm glad you like this story!_

_Q: __Well, this is definitely an interesting start, Vegeta may be stronger than the majority of the opponents on Earth for now, but that means he won't be able to get a good power boost, I like how Vegeta's minimum and Roshi's 50% (I think) are roughly equal, Roshi may not be as strong as Vegeta, but he is older, wiser and much more experienced, not to mention, as he said, he has fought a lot of enemies, so he knows how to adapt._

_A: Yeah, Roshi has plenty of experience fighting stronger enemies (ex. King Piccolo), so he was able to put that to good use when training Vegeta._

_Q: __Cooooool... I like this story. It has one of the most interesting plot twists from the actual anime/manga story. I enjoyed reading it. You know, I would like to see this story animated, since I have a really tough time imagining Chibi Vegeta saying all that stuff without too much pride. Are you going to introduce Kakarot/Goku in the next chapter? I'd like to see what happens. Is Vegeta going to get a gi? That would be pretty cool... But Bulma/Vegeta can't happen right? Or can it? I'm not too sure about the ages... Anyways, good story, update soon!_

_A: We'll see Goku next chapter. And yes, Vegeta has a gi now; it pretty much looks like Kid Goku's Turtle School gi, only with Vegeta's white gloves and boots added. Regarding Bulma and Vegeta… well, Bulma is four years older than Goku (when _Dragon Ball_ officially begins, he's 12 and she's 16), and Vegeta is five years older than Goku, so he's one year older than Bulma. Their ages are the same, relative to each other, as they were in canon._

_Q: __This story is going to be awesome, I just know it! Another great chapter. I really enjoyed the interaction between Vegeta and Master Roshi._

_A: Yeah, the interactions between Vegeta and Roshi are going to be fun._

_Q: __Oddly I think that Roshi, so long as he can keep his pervy side contended, will be a much bigger influence on Vegeta then he ever was on Goku. Vegeta is just so much smarter then Goku and if Roshi can use that..._

_Anyway I look forward to reading more, and seeing how Vegeta and Bulma interact when Bulma being... well DB Bulma and what she want to wish for..._

_A: He could be, yes. And Vegeta's first meeting with Bulma should be interesting, to say the least._

_Q: __Awesome!_

_This was really cool. Reeeeeeeally cool!_

_I think this is like the first time ever I really liked Roshi. He and I got off on the wrong foot pretty much from minute one... but I actually like your Roshi! And that he sees something more than a murderous child in Vegeta!_

_When do you estimate Goku/Karkarott and Vegeta will meet? What about Bulma? Will she play a role in this story (I like the Vegeta x Bulma pairing waaaaay too much, I admitt it!)_

_Keep going, this rocks!_

_Greetings,__  
__Baltaine_

_A: Yeah, I'm trying to make Roshi less of a comedic relief character, and more of a serious-but-likeable character, especially with how he deals with Vegeta. And he definitely sees the potential for a great warrior in Vegeta; considering how he trains Goku, Krillin, Tien, etc. to be the world's new generation of defenders, it makes sense that he'd be even more focused on someone who's so much more powerful than they are._

_Well, Vegeta and Goku will meet next chapter… we'll have to see how that goes. And yes, Bulma will definitely play a role in this story._

_Q: __If you can swing it, you should pair goku with bulma, there isn't enough stories with that pairing._

_A: Um… maybe?_

_Q: __Is it a yaoi?_

_A: Ah… no, it is not. Sorry._


	4. Full Moon

**Disclaimer: Dragon Ball, Dragon Ball Z, Dragon Ball GT and their respective franchises are the property of Funimation, Toei Animation, Fuji TV and Akira Toriyama.**

.

**Dragon Ball Saga, Part 4: Full Moon**

_Kame House_

_Planet Earth_

_Age 738_

Vegeta burst through the front door into Kame House to find Roshi seated at the table, eating an early breakfast.

The old martial artist looked up in surprise. "Vegeta? What's wrong?"

"I found him," Vegeta replied, an excited grin flickering across his face. "My Attack Pod's computer finally picked up a transmission: I have the location where Kakarot's ship landed."

Roshi's eyes widened. "Really? That's great!" Then he paused as a realization struck him. "Wait… that means you're leaving, aren't you?"

The Saiyan child nodded. "Yes, I am. I need to find Kakarot before he starts his mission: frankly, I'm surprised he hasn't already, so there's no time to lose. I'll go to that location, find him, and bring him back here as soon as he's old enough to travel long distances."

The martial artist was surprised, blinking curiously. "You're bringing him back here?"

"Of course." Vegeta shrugged. "My ship's still here, and I can't very well take that with me when I go looking for him. So I need you to keep it safely here and make sure nothing happens to it while I'm gone."

After a moment, Roshi nodded in assent. "All right," he agreed. "I'll take care of it for you. Just make sure you bring your friend back here as soon as you can, all right?" Privately, he'd found that he quite liked having Vegeta around, and he was going to miss the child while he was gone.

"I will," Vegeta agreed promptly. "Now, I'll need supplies for the journey there, if you don't mind."

The old man grinned. "You got it."

.

_Two days later…_

Vegeta stood on the front porch of Kame House. He was wearing his Saiyan armor, rather than the training outfit that Roshi had lent him, as he figured he should set the right example for Kakarot when he got there. However, he did have the other clothes Roshi had found for him tucked into the backpack he was wearing, as he would need a change of clothes.

"Good luck out there, Vegeta," Roshi advised him. "And you'd better come back, you hear me?"

The prince smirked. "Of course." He walked down the front steps and out onto the beach. Turning around, he glanced at Roshi and held up a hand in farewell. Then his blue aura flared to life around him, and he blasted off into the air with a rush of wind and a swirl of sand.

Roshi watched as the small figure vanished onto the horizon.

"Take care of yourself, kid," he said under his breath. "I have a feeling the Earth may need someone like you someday."

.

Vegeta soared effortlessly through the sky, his aura leaving a blue streak behind him as he flew onward. He had flown since arriving on this planet, of course, but nothing like this.

Letting out an invigorated shout, he spun, spiraling downwards through the clouds until it seemed that he was about to plunge into the ocean, and then pulling away at the last second, rising back into the sky.

Pulling a small radar scanner from his pocket as he flew, he checked the screen. He had removed the device from his damaged pod, and had altered it somewhat to make it a portable handheld rather than a ship-mounted sensor.

Confirmed that he was going the right way, Vegeta powered up and accelerated, carving through the clouds as he rocketed towards his destination.

.

_Mount Paozu, Planet Earth_

It took the prince about a day to reach his destination. His flying speed seemed to have increased on this world, which was most likely a result of the lower gravity here. He kept checking the scanner, homing in on the signal from Kakarot's Attack Pod.

Finally, he located the source of the transmission: a large mountain, covered in dense forest. Circling above the treetops, he closed in on the signal, until he'd finally pinpointed its exact location.

Readying himself, Vegeta descended feetfirst through the trees, landing lightly on the forest floor. He walked forwards, pushing through the bushes.

And that was when he saw it, partially visible among a clump of tall, cylindrical, grass-like plants: a Saiyan Attack Pod, very similar to his own. The familiar triangular insignia adorned its side.

As the young prince approached the pod, he was surprised to find that the hatch was open a crack. Pulling it the rest of the way open, he peered inside, looking around. As he'd feared, it was empty.

Vegeta sighed. "Great." He looked around, sealing the hatch to protect the pod's interior from the elements. _Well, let's be realistic about this. He can't have gotten far: he _is_ only a baby, after all. There hasn't been any damage to this pod, or to the surrounding forest, so I'm assuming he didn't transform and escape. Which leaves only one option._

He scowled. _Someone else has already found him and taken him elsewhere._

He glanced around, examining the area around the pod for any signs of someone who might have been here. It only took him a few seconds to identify a nearby walking trail that led off through the woods.

Vegeta's eyes narrowed. _There we go._

.

After about an hour of walking, the Saiyan boy emerged out of the woods, into a large clearing. A small house was visible up ahead, at the end of a dirt road that led away through the trees.

"Hello?" Vegeta called out as he walked forward across the clearing. No one answered, but he could sense at least one energy signature inside the house.

Walking up to the front door, he knocked loudly. After a few seconds, an elderly man opened the door. He had a large white mustache, and was wearing a black shirt and pants under a large orange-and-white shirt patterned with yellow circles.

"Oh, hello," he said in surprise. "Um… can I help you?"

Vegeta raised an eyebrow. "That depends on whether you have what I'm looking for."

The old man blinked curiously. "And what would that be?"

"Have you seen a young child in this area recently?" Vegeta asked matter-of-factly. "He would be about a year old, with spiky black hair and a tail."

The old man's eyes widened in astonishment. "You… you know that boy?"

The young prince smirked faintly. "You could say that, yes." He took a step back, letting his tail unfurl from around his waist and wave behind him. "You might say I'm family, of sorts."

The old man took a step back, inhaling sharply. "Amazing!" he gasped. "How…?"

Vegeta chuckled. "Well, based on that reaction, I'm assuming you've seen him. Where is he?"

"The boy?" The old man's shock faded somewhat. "He's, ah… he's inside, sleeping." He pointed over his shoulder, and then smiled. "Where are my manners? By all means, my boy, do come in."

Nodding briskly, Vegeta brushed past him and strode into the house. It wasn't much to look at: just a small kitchen, a dining table, and a bed tucked into one corner. Beside that bed was a small wooden crib. The crib seemed to be a recent addition to the room, as the nearby furniture had obviously been moved out of the way to make room for it.

Vegeta walked up to the crib. Since it wasn't elevated above floor level, he was able to see inside despite his small stature. Inside lay a sleeping child; a young boy, no more than a year old. His spiky dark hair and the tail that was visibly wrapped around his waist marked him as a Saiyan.

"Kakarot," Vegeta murmured.

"I found him about a year ago," the old man explained without hearing him, walking up to them and gazing down fondly at the sleeping boy. "I was out gathering firewood, when I heard it. Thought it must be thunder at first, until I heard an explosion and the ground shook. I saw the smoke over the trees, so I hurried over to see what it was. When I got there, I didn't know what to think: I'd been expecting a lightning strike, but what I saw was some kind of metal… ship, I suppose is the word. I'd never seen anything like it before." He looked down at the baby Saiyan and smiled. "I walked up to it to see if I could figure out what it was. There was a little window in the side, so I looked in, and there he was. I couldn't believe my eyes; things like this don't just… happen!"

Vegeta rolled his eyes. _Not on _this_ planet, anyway,_ he thought to himself condescendingly.

"So, after I managed to get the darn thing open, I picked him up and carried him home, and he's been here ever since." The old man sat on a nearby footstool, gazing curiously at Vegeta. "Now, if I may ask… who are you?" He glanced from the young prince to the boy in the crib, and back again. "Are you two related? You look very similar."

"Related?" Vegeta scoffed. "Don't make me laugh. We're the same species, but that's all. I share no relation with him." He turned up his nose, looking over at the sleeping child with disdain. It was an automatic reflex: to tell the truth, he had no reason to dislike Kakarot as yet, but he'd grown accustomed to treating other Saiyans as inferiors, so he looked down on the other child out of habit.

The old man frowned. "Well, then, who are you?"

The young prince smirked. "My name is Vegeta, and that's all you need to know about me. Now, if you don't mind…"

A sound interrupted him, and he turned back to the crib to see that Kakarot was waking up. The baby yawned, opening his dark eyes and looking curiously up at Vegeta. Other than the sound of his breathing, he didn't make much noise.

Vegeta frowned. _That's odd. I've been to the nurseries back home: if there's anything I know about Saiyan babies, it's that they almost never shut up. So why is he so calm?_

Intrigued, he turned around and leaned over the crib, ignoring the old man for the moment. He stared intently at Kakarot, and the baby gazed inquisitively back at him.

_Okay, let's try something else,_ the prince decided. Carefully, he reached out a hand and gently poked Kakarot on the stomach.

The baby giggled, but made no other reply.

Vegeta's eyes widened. _What? Normally a Saiyan child would have tried to bite me the second I did that!_ He poked Kakarot's stomach again, slightly harder this time, but again the Saiyan child just giggled happily. He grabbed onto Vegeta's hand, playfully tugging at the prince's fingers, but didn't attempt to bite him or harm him in any way.

Vegeta yanked his hand away and whirled on the old man. "What's wrong with him?" he demanded.

The old man took a step back, frowning in confusion. "What do you mean?" he inquired.

The boy's eyes narrowed. "I _mean_ that, at his age, he should be constantly aggressive, hostile, vicious… hell, he should be borderline savage! And he _definitely_ shouldn't be this… passive!" He spat the word _passive_ as if it was an epithet, waving at the baby Saiyan in the crib.

The old man seemed confused for a moment. "Hmm…" Then his eyes opened wide in realization, and he snapped his fingers. "Ah, of course! That must be it!"

Vegeta raised an eyebrow. "What the hell are you talking about?"

The old man smiled faintly and sighed. "Well, for quite a while after I found him, he had quite a nasty temperament, just like what you were talking about. One day, though, I had taken him out for a walk through the woods. We were walking along the edge of a ravine, and I carried him across a large fallen tree that had fallen across it. Only, he was struggling the whole time, and when we were halfway across he kicked me in the face and I lost my grip on him. He fell down the hill and hit his head on a big rock at the bottom of the ravine."

Vegeta's head snapped around. "What?!"

"I was able to climb down and get him," the old man explained. "Fortunately, he wasn't too badly hurt, apart from a pretty nasty cut on his head. I brought him home and fixed him up, and he recovered fairly quickly." He blinked. "Although, ever since then, he hasn't acted like that anymore: he's been very playful and happy, just like a normal child. I didn't think much of it, to be honest: he healed perfectly well, and since then it's been much easier for me to care for him." He smiled fondly as he looked over at the child, who giggled again as if he knew that he was the topic of discussion.

"What… but…" Vegeta was momentarily lost for words. After a long moment, though, the pieces of the puzzle fell into place.

_Oh, dear god, he's brain-damaged,_ he thought to himself as he stared back down at Kakarot. _What the hell am I supposed to do?! I'm stuck on a dead-end planet in the middle of nowhere, and the only other Saiyan within hundreds of light-years – if there are any of us left at all – is _brain-damaged_?!_

An audible groan escaped his lips, and he sank onto the floor next to the crib.

"Are you all right?" the old man inquired.

After a few seconds, Vegeta sighed. "Now, what would give you that impression?" he muttered. "The fact that you managed to mentally damage the only other member of my species on this godforsaken planet?!"

"Hang on… your _species?_" The old man frowned, uncomprehendingly. "You mean, you and Goku aren't human?"

"Of course not," Vegeta shot back. He indicated himself and Kakarot with a wave of his hand. "This boy and I are members of a species known as Saiyans. And no, we're not from this planet: we were sent here when our own planet was destroyed." He sighed, his posture slumping. "As far as I know, he and I may be the last members of our race in existence."

The old man was watching him with a sympathetic expression on his face. Vegeta, however, didn't want pity from anyone, especially not some weakling human.

Abruptly, however, something that the old man had said a few seconds earlier registered. Vegeta frowned, lifting his head and looking over at him. "And who the hell is _Goku_?" he demanded.

"Well, that's what I named him," the old man explained. "Son Goku. I named him after myself: my name's Son Gohan." He extended a hand. "It's a pleasure to meet you, by the way… Vegeta, did you say?"

"Yes," Vegeta replied curtly, not bothering to shake his hand. "And, for your information, his _name_ is Kakarot."

"Kakarot." The old man, Gohan, considered. "An interesting name."

"Oh, shut up," Vegeta muttered.

.

Much against his better judgment, Vegeta reluctantly chose to stay at the old man's home. Ostensibly, it was indefinite, but he had every intention of taking Kakarot and returning to Roshi's home as soon as the boy was old enough to fly.

This, as it turned out, would take much longer than he had initially thought.

Kakarot – or "Goku", as Gohan insisted on calling him – was, without a doubt, a Saiyan. Despite his head injury suppressing his natural disposition, he had the same ravenous appetite, and the same desire to train and grow stronger, as a normal Saiyan. That came as a relief to Vegeta, who had been worried that the boy might grow up no different than the other weakling inhabitants of this planet.

Vegeta himself continued to train, of course, but he didn't get much improvement, even less than he had as Roshi's student. At the very least, Roshi had known some highly useful techniques, and his power had been significantly greater than Gohan's. To his credit, though, the old man had turned out to be a decent martial artist in his own right: he'd apparently also trained under Roshi at some point. However, just like Roshi, he wasn't nearly strong enough to be a decent sparring partner.

Time passed. Days turned into weeks, weeks turned into months, and still Vegeta stayed, against his better judgment, with Kakarot and Gohan, and in a state of near-constant boredom.

Once Kakarot/Goku was old enough, Vegeta immediately started him on training, trying to toughen the kid up a little. While Goku immediately took to fighting with a passion, actual martial arts were still beyond him, given that he was still basically a toddler (although Saiyan toddlers were much stronger and more durable than human ones).

Vegeta wasn't concerned: the boy was bound to improve with time, after all, and they had all the time in the world.

The only precaution that the young prince knew he had to take was the possibility of Kakarot or himself transforming into their Oozaru, or Great Ape, state by looking at a full moon. Vegeta had noticed on his approach to the planet that it possessed a large moon, perfectly suited for generating the Blutz waves necessary for the transformation.

Unfortunately, Vegeta hadn't had much training on his Oozaru state yet, as he'd still been a child when he escaped Frieza's army, and he knew that Kakarot would have no control whatsoever. To that end, he'd made sure to avoid looking at the moon while he was on Roshi's island, to keep himself from transforming. To prevent this from happening to Kakarot, he'd deigned to inform Gohan of the danger. The old man had immediately agreed that they should make sure that didn't happen, and so he'd made sure that Goku understood never to look at the full moon, claiming that it would cause a monster to attack him.

For quite some time, the Saiyan child obeyed these instructions without question. Countless nights passed without any incident.

And then, one ordinary night, two years after Vegeta had moved in with Goku and Gohan, something went wrong.

.

_Mount Paozu, Age 740…_

Vegeta was sleeping peacefully in his bed, tucked into a corner of Gohan's small house, when he heard a muffled _boom_ from outside.

His eyes snapped open, just as a second impact echoed through the wall. It was followed by a thunderous roar.

Vegeta's eyes widened. _Oh, hell,_ he thought.

And then the ceiling came crashing down on top of him.

Fortunately, the prince was able to instantly raise his own power level before the impact, thereby shielding himself from harm. The rest of the house, however, was pulverized, and Vegeta was buried under the resulting avalanche of shattered wood.

Cursing, the Saiyan flung out his aura, smashing aside the rubble, and staggered to his feet, glancing around wildly. Even at night, it was obvious what had happened: there was no mistaking the massive figure towering over him, which had just crushed the house with a single stomp of its massive foot.

"Damn it, Kakarot!" Vegeta hissed as he glared up at the looming mass of the Oozaru, taking care to shield his eyes from the light of the full moon. "I _told_ you not to look at the damn moon!" Of course, the fact that Kakarot was only three years old had made it difficult from the start, but he'd hoped that the kid wouldn't transform until he was old enough to be trained. Clearly, this was no longer the case.

_Oh, to hell with it._ The situation wasn't all that bad in any case: Kakarot might be ten times stronger in this form, but he still wasn't nearly as strong as Vegeta himself. Even without his own Oozaru transformation, the prince would be able to handle this.

Even as a quick strategy flashed into the young Saiyan's mind, the Oozaru noticed him. Red eyes blazing, it let out an angry roar and swung a massive fist down at him.

Vegeta reacted instantly. Powering up swiftly, he dove and rolled to one side as the beast's fist struck the ground, smashing a crater into the dirt. Leaping into the air, he vaulted over its next backhanded swipe, then landed on its outstretched arm. Running along the arm, he kept up his speed until he reached its shoulder and then lunged forward, swinging an uppercut that crashed into its lower jaw and knocked the Oozaru flat on its back. The entire area shook when it crashed to the ground.

Struggling to its feet, the Oozaru roared angrily, rubbing at its bruised jaw with one hand. Its tail lashed behind it, knocking over several nearby trees in the process, as it turned, looking for its attacker.

There was no warning; Vegeta appeared directly in front of it, swooping down and slamming into the Oozaru with a full-body slam into its chest. Normally, this wouldn't have done anything, but he had powered up to a significant portion of his full strength before impact. The Oozaru was launched backwards, sent smashing through a dozen trees and carving a trail through the forest before it skidded to a halt. Roaring, it picked itself up, panting and searching again for its diminutive opponent.

This time, Vegeta appeared above and behind the creature with a burst of super-speed. His eyes narrowed as he came to a decision: this battle had lasted long enough. Clenching his fists together, he swung before the Oozaru could turn around, landing a solid, double-fisted hammer strike to the back of its neck.

The Oozaru's roar cut off abruptly. Its eyes widened, before the red glow in them faded away. Then its eyes rolled up into its head, and it toppled, unconscious. It crushed several more trees when it fell.

Vegeta descended from overhead, landing lightly beside the unconscious beast as its body began to shrink. The dark fur melted away, replaced by normal skin, as it reverted to the sleeping body of Goku.

Sighing, the eight-year-old Saiyan prince picked up the baby, carrying Goku gently in his arms, and lifted off again, floating swiftly back towards the collapsed house. It was then that a sudden thought struck him.

_Where was the old man?_

.

Son Gohan lay crumpled amid the ruins of his home. The lower half of his body had been crushed, his legs broken and his ribs snapped like twigs. Unlike Vegeta, the Oozaru's foot had come down squarely on top of him.

As he set Goku's sleeping form down, Vegeta's eyes widened in shock. He rushed forward, heaving the rubble off of Gohan's body with a single wave of his arm, and crouched down beside the old man.

Gohan coughed weakly, gasping for air as blood trickled from the corners of his mouth. "Ve…geta? Are you all right?"

"I'm fine," the prince replied, looking down into the old man's face.

The elderly martial artist coughed again, trying to summon up the strength to speak. "And… G-Goku?"

"He's fine," Vegeta assured him, for once not bothering to correct the boy's name. He'd never particularly liked Gohan, but over time he had grown to have at least a little respect for him. It was clear that the man was a fighter, even if his power level wasn't much to speak of, and he had taken care of Kakarot the best he could.

"Good," Gohan wheezed. Blood bubbled at the corners of his mouth, but he still retained enough strength to reach up and grasp Vegeta's shoulder. "Now… listen to me. You have to take care of Goku. That boy… he's going to be a great man someday. You two can both grow up to do great things. I can sense that, but… you have to look out for each other. Take care of each other." Despite his broken body, his eyes burned with conviction. "_Promise me._"

After a long moment of silence, his eyes locked on Gohan's, Vegeta nodded. "I will," he said, his voice oddly soft for a moment before he cleared his throat. "I'll keep him safe. That, I promise you."

Gohan nodded in satisfaction. "Good," he breathed. His head sank back, and he lay back, serene amid the rubble. He closed his eyes, and Vegeta heard him sigh as his body went limp.

And then there was silence.

Slowly, Vegeta walked away from the old man's body and made his way back over to where Goku still lay sleeping. Picking up the Saiyan child, he gazed down at his face, frowning at the peaceful expression. After a moment, though, the frown faded.

"Don't worry, Kakarot," he said, his voice sounding almost gentle. "I'll look after you." He sighed. "Someone has to, after all."

.

_AN: Hey there, everyone! Okay, I'm SO sorry it's taken me so long to update this story: I've been really busy with my first year of college and other projects, not to mention that I've had lots of writer's block on this chapter. Fortunately, I _have_ been able to plan out what I'm going to do with this story, and I can hopefully promise that you guys are going to love it!_

_For those of you who guessed that Goku's head injury would still have happened in this timeline, well done! Just as you all guessed, since it had already been over a year by the time Vegeta found him, he had already hit his head. So he will grow up as Goku, but it may be obvious that he'll be slightly different as a result of Vegeta's presence._

_Sorry to those of you who are fans of Grandpa Gohan, but his death was important to develop the relationship between Vegeta and Goku. We'll see how that relationship has progressed next chapter!_

_Shoutouts to Jokermask18, Dimension Distorter, ShadowLDrago, Zyphrost, CMCMC, Flameraven, mellra, Guest (1), Kakamarot, jhud, GVLuver, Super Vegetarott, ArmCannos44, PixelezOtaku, 11cookeaw1, kwak73, Kung-fu Blaziken, Hotaru Vie Jaegerjaquez, DBZfanLou, SPARTAN-626, TheSkyBreakerV1, abdullah rehman, SaiyanPrince541 and bluesonicblast for reviewing: you guys are awesome!_

_As always, I greatly appreciate getting feedback on my work from you guys, so if you have any comments or questions regarding this chapter or the story as a whole, please review! (No hate, please.)_

_Next chapter, we finally get to the events at the beginning of __**Dragon Ball**__! How will this familiar story be altered by the presence of Vegeta? Stay tuned! :)_

_See you all next time!_

_Review Q&amp;A:_

_**Q:**__ (Smiles) You know, we don't see many unique DB stories like this. I've only read two other ones that's really caught my complete interest. This one makes three. Really awesome job, yo. You say that this Vegeta, well...as a child I mean, doesn't have much control over his own Great Ape form. That actually makes a lot of sense. I'm sure it takes years of training to bring your rational mind from the killer instincts of a beast. Even for the Saiyan prince. Though it doesn't matter. You bring it in whenever you decide to bring it in. I am so CURIOUS as to how Vegeta now living on Earth YEARS before he arrived is going to change things! I'm so ready for that!_

_**A: **__Well, thanks! And yeah, regarding the Oozaru thing, I know Vegeta could control himself easily in canon, but that would've taken a lot of time and dedicated training to master it, since Goku and Gohan in canon had almost no control whatsoever. Therefore, since Vegeta was only five years old when he fled Frieza's army and came to Earth, he hasn't done anything like that yet._

_**Q:**__ Sweet chapter. It looks like I'll have to wait even more to see the Goku/Vegeta meeting..._

_**A:**__ Well, wait no longer!_

_**Q:**__ Now, I've got a question: due to Vegeta's power are you going to have the other characters such as Goku, Piccolo, Krillin, etc., grow stronger faster or more of a canon route? Or in-between? Also will Vegeta be training Goku to become as strong as him and skip over Roshi's training?_

_**A:**__ An excellent question: we'll have to see how that plays out! I can tell you, it will not be exactly the same as canon._

_**Q:**__ Goku and Vegeta should be interesting, its been a full year so Goku should be Goku, but Vegeta might beat a little Saiyan into the brat ne?_

_As much as I'm sure I'll enjoy seeing Vegeta learning under Roshi I almost want you to skip ahead, seeing this Vegeta interacting with Yamcha or Tien should be fun... after all he might just kill them before they can swap sides._

_**A:**__ Yup, Goku is still Goku, but his upbringing here will obviously be a little different than it was in canon (where he simply grew up in the wilderness on his own after Gohan died). As for other characters like Bulma, Yamcha, Tien, Krillin, etc., we'll see a few of them next chapter._

_**Q:**__ Very nice! Can't help but wonder if Raditz and Nappa will be allies in this fic instead of enemies like they are so often portrayed as? I also can't help but wonder if both Vegeta and Goku will be stronger or weaker than their canon counterparts by the time the Saiyan Saga comes around. Good call on making Roshi more serious, I'm sure if he perved around like in canon Vegeta would blow him, his island, and half of the world sky high! This is really shaping up nicely and I can't wait to see what happens next when everyones favorite monkey boy shows up!_

_**A:**__ Raditz and Nappa… let's just say they'll play a role and leave it at that._

_**Q:**__ I'm hoping Goku hits his head in this. You know he stays the way he is in the show._

_Your story has been interesting so far. I do wonder how Dragon Ball will be with Vegeta. And wonder how Vegeta and Bulma will get together in this._

_**A:**__ Yeah, we'll get into the __**Dragon Ball**__-era portion of the story next chapter._

_**Q:**__ It's taken me a while to do this, but I've finally become current on TLP. I have to apologize for the wait that has come with this review, seeing as how I was relatively busy with my own writing and a few other things that needed to be resolved before I could go ahead and get back to taking reading requests again. To try and make up for it, though, I'll try and scrutinize everything to the best of my ability._

_[Lengthy review, didn't want to squeeze all of the text in here, so I'll just put my replies to it]_

_**A:**__ Thanks so much for such a thorough review! For your points regarding the story's plot, I have made some edits to previous chapters, particularly the first chapter, so you guys might want to go back and reread them to get a better idea of the changes I've made: I basically rewrote Vegeta's escape from Frieza's army, and changed a few other minor things here and there._

_Nice work guessing that Goku wouldn't be Kakarot by this point: I was hoping people would figure that out. That's why I didn't have Vegeta track him down immediately after landing on Earth: I love Goku's character, and I'm very much looking forward to putting my own spin on him, as well as crafting a brand-new relationship between Goku and Vegeta (as their relationship is obviously going to be VERY different from canon)._

_**Q:**__ Awesome idea for a story and I can't wait to see what you do with it. I'm glad to hear Vegeta wont just be KOing all the villains and I cant wait to see him and Goku meet up, but it seems kind of weird. Won't Goku be two or three? Kind of hard to have saiyan tactical talk with a toddler. I also like how you're not leaving Nappa and Raditz completely out of the loop. I can't wait to see more._

_**A:**__ Yeah, don't worry: it won't just be the Vegeta show, although he will be by far the strongest person on Earth for some time. And yes, Vegeta's meeting with Goku didn't involve much talking, given that Goku was still less than two years old and Vegeta was only six. Hopefully it was a good scene, though._

_**Q:**__ This is great! I've never thought I would see another one of these kinds of stories. Vegeta training under Master Roshi from the start seemed pretty odd to me, since they only just met. I wonder if Kakarot already hit his head, and became Goku already. If he did, then Vegeta's gonna be pretty disappointed. Also, please update soon!_

_**A:**__ Well, adult Vegeta would never have deigned to train under Roshi, but remember, he's still a kid at this point, so he'd be less cruel than in canon and more willing to learn from others. Not to mention, at that point he had pretty much nothing better to do, and his Saiyan drive to train and improve also helped._


End file.
